Posted in Cigar City Brewing, Coming Soon

Guava & Chardonnay Honor City Founder

Cigar City Don Gavino's Big Guava

Tampa, Florida’s rich cigar history is unlike anywhere else in the world. What you might not know, is Tampa’s guava history. That’s where the idea behind Cigar City Brewing’s Don Gavino’s Big Guava is born. Gavino came to Tampa looking for wild guava trees. The guava? Less than expected. Big Don didn’t give up. Long story short, this man and his magnificent ‘stash is the reason Ybor City exists. In his honor, Cigar City has taken their double guava ale and aged it in Chardonnay barrels.

Most Tampa residents are familiar with Vincente Martinez Thor, who along with fellow cigar factory owner Ignacio Haya turned Tampa from a sleepy fishing village into the ‘Cigar Capital of the World” which at its peak was home to 200 cigar factories producing over 700 million cigars a year. But few of Tampa’s even long-time residents are familiar with Gavino Gutierrez, the Spanish architect, surveyor and civil engineer who first came to Tampa looking for wild guava trees. The plan was to use the supply of supposedly abundant wild fruit in a new factory making marmalade and guava paste. However, the journey was not fruitful and the guava population was much smaller than expected. Gavino did not give up on Tampa however. Convinced Tampa’s natural harbor and access to Henry B. Plant’s new rail-line would make Tampa an excellent import/export hub, Gavino set about convincing his friends Thor and Haya to move their cigar factories to Tampa. They agreed and Don Gavino set about surveying 40 acres of swamp and scrub brush northeast of Tampa for “Mr. Ybor’s City”. Vincente then named Don Gavino his architect and construction foreman and he set about developing the Master Plan for what would become Ybor City, designing the system of streets and avenues and overseeing the construction of the factory and even the housing built for the factory workers. In honor of his life’s work we could think of no better name for our Double Guava Ale than Don Gavino’s Big Guava. Cheers, Gavino! 

Style: American Strong Ale (w/ Guava, Wine Barrel Aged, Chardonnay)
Availability: 750 ml bottles
Arrival: TBA

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